illenvillain

1987 Specialized Allez SE (stock suntour sprint 9000) or 1987 Schwinn Prologue with Shimano 600

Which one do you guys choose? Schwinn is in better overall condition, but slightly more expensive.

merziac

I vote Allez as I'm partial to to Merz's involvement, they are great bikes.

You really can't go wrong with either, they are both excellent examples of what a bike should be, they both punch well above there weight class imho.

We need pics to determine if one is a better deal than the other. Fit is key, the one that does is the one to get.

rgvg

Aren't prologues kind of scarce as they were only made 1 or 2 years? I could be wrong though.

texaspandj

Definitely need pics .

rccardr 

Must admit I'm partial to the Prologue, have had several and they are awesome riders. Am also not a big Suntour Sprint fan, especially when compared to Shimano 600 that's of the 6208/640X persuasion.

RiddleOfSteel

Allez SE's enjoy a great reputation for good reason. DB Tange chromoly frame with nice lugs. That blue with the red and yellow graphics, and late-6200-era Shimano 600 are iconic.

Are the frames both the same size, or at least in your size range? That would help make the comparison between the two easier, while also being critical to your comfort and resulting confidence on the bike.

A bike in better condition will usually be more expensive, so I see nothing disadvantageous about the Prologue in that case.

Schwinn made the Prologue for three years, 1987-1989, and they were offered in black/grey or red/white color combos. Frameset purchase only--the build by the buyer would be by definition custom. That tells you the level of frame this was (aka right below the Paramount). Prologue's don't seem to pop up very often at all. Prologues were built with Tange's top Prestige tubing. Light, thin, yet still strong.

I will also agree that pics or a link are a must. 1988 was the first year of Shimano's "6400" era 600 groupset. Dark grey painted parts as well as silver. Excellent groupset that still performs well today.

Suntour's Sprint 9000 is a near top-end (I think just below Superbe Pro) and works decently if set up well. A complete 9000 groupset is pretty rare. I have a soft spot for the Accushift (and Accushift+) groupsets as they worked well for me.

If the Allez SE is anything like a former '88 Sirrus I had, it will be a touch heavy for its size (frameset weight we're talking about here), but you won't notice the extra weight and it will feel very solid. If my '87 Prologue is anything to go by, the frameset is a bit lighter and the out of saddle characteristics are more engaging, if a bit sinuous (to use a word).

It's hard to lose with either, but I will cast my vote for the Prologue as it is the lighter, rarer bike with exceptional qualities. It is also completely worthy of modern components and looks pretty wicked with a good setup if that's a direction you want to go.

Kuromori

Prologue, Tange prestige frames are rare.

illenvillain

thank you for all your input guys! im starting to lean towards the Prologue as I love the tange prestige on my Bridgestone MB 1 and gray color scheme is just awesome.

miamijim

Prologue

BFisher

Awesome!
Everything is just awesome!